The picture shows a light-colored tinaco in Merida.
[Nyerges is the author of “How to Survive Anywhere,” and
other books. He has led survival skills classes since 1974. He can be reached
at www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com
or Box 41834, Eagle Rock, CA 90041.]
I’ve heard it so long that it sounds like some religious
mantra: “Don’t drink the water in
Mexico.”
The meaning is that a visitor to Mexico should not drink the
water untreated. And why is
that? One explanation that I used to
hear back in the 1970s when I first visited Mexico was that, while every place
has its own bacteria and organisms in their water, one will get used to the
organisms in their water after a while.
And supposedly, this also meant that native Mexicans could drink their
municipal tap from the water without concern. When I went to language school in
Mexico, I always boiled my water or added water purification tablet to the tap
water, or purchased bottled water. Back
then, I never thought about asking native Mexicans if they drank their water
out of the tap.
More recently, having visited the Yucatan region several
times, I asked some of the natives about this.
These days bottled water is everywhere, and most of the people whose
homes I stayed in purchased all their
water and did not drink from the tap. When I asked whether or not they’d get
sick by drinking water out of their tap without purifying it, they shrugged and
said they didn’t know. They buy their water.
Finally, I met
someone who seemed to know a thing about the Mexican water situation. I asked Julia, who was an American who
married a Mexican man and now calls the Yucatan region her home where she and
her husband run a farm.
“Do you drink from the tap directly?” I asked Julia.
“No, though I’m not afraid to,” she responded. “If I’m out
in the fields and I’m thirsty, I will drink from the hose and I don’t get sick.
But usually, we buy purified and
filtered water and they deliver it to our home.”
Julia went on to explain that the tap water is used directly
for washing, brushing teeth, irrigation, etc.
“When people say not to drink the water in Merida (Yucatan),
I don’t believe the reason is that the water has bad bacteria. I believe it’s because the water here is
very high in minerals and calcium, etc. And it’s those minerals that might cause
sickness if you’re not used to it,” explained Julia.
I asked Julia about the people living in all the small
villages where they could not afford to buy water. “I don’t know what they do,”
responded Julia.
“However,” added Julia, “I’ve been told that in 20 years or
so, you won’t be able to drink the water in the Yucatan region because it will
be so polluted.” Julia pointed out that
all the water in Yucatan comes from underground, and that the soil is very porous. She adds that everyone uses septic systems
in Yucatan, and there is no sewer system (like in most parts of the U.S.) where
the waste water is treated before it is discharged into the soil or water. Although the local politicians all talk
about installing a sewer system after each flood, Julia doesn’t think that will
ever happen because of the immensity of such a project.
“Because the soil is so porous, when chemicals are used,
they go directly into the ground water,” she says.
“So, because there is no sewer system, there is flooding
after every major storm, and everyone blames the mayor and they elect a new
mayor who makes new promises, and then it rains again and floods again because
nothing was done.”
I concluded that it was a good thing for me to buy my water,
or purify it, whenever I travel.
And it’s not wise to judge the water of such as large country as Mexico
with one yardstick because the “water situation” of any country is vastly more
complex than what I’ve presented here.
Unfortunately, we should be suspect of most tap water and most open
sources of water, wherever we are.
I asked Julia about the black tanks on nearly everyone’s
roof in most parts of Mexico. “Those are called tinacos,” Julia told me, which
my dictionary told me simply means “water tank.”
In the United States, people often let their water run a bit
so it starts to cool off. However, due
to the lack of pressurized water in Mexico, most homes and buildings have large
water tanks – tinacos – on their roofs. These then deliver the water by gravity
as needed. But since these are traditionally
black, the coolest water comes out first and then the water gets hotter as you
let the tap run because the water was heated by the sun. Now you can find tinacos white or
light-colored so that the water is not heated so much by the sun.
[Did you have any comments or questions about this story? I'd love to hear from you!]
[Did you have any comments or questions about this story? I'd love to hear from you!]
1 comment:
When you're abroad, or even in an unfamiliar place, you'd rather be safe than sorry. Whether it be buying bottled water or purifying it yourself, either of them is a good bet. You don't want to be sick in a place you barely know. Taking this tip to heart helps you and your companions immensely. Have a safe trip!
Verna Griffin @ Axeon Water Technologies
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